Liesl and Siblings: An Anthology
by Kyrie Bell
Summary: Her mother died when she was only twelve years old, leaving her to care for her six younger siblings and deal with an emotionally absent father and a gaggle of disagreeable governesses. Who is Liesl von Trapp? A little look into the life of the eldest von Trapp girl, and her relationship with her brothers and sisters.
1. Chapter 1: Liesl and Friedrich

_Disclaimer: "The Sound of Music" and all its characters belong to Rodgers and Hammerstein_

* * *

 **Liesl and Friedrich: Edelweiss**

"Look right there!" Five-year-old Liesl whispered to her brother, Friedrich, pointing through the banisters. "There's Mother!"

"Mama?" Friedrich said, peering through the railing to find his mother in a crowd of party-goers. The string quartet Father had hired - the same groups as always, the one their mother adored - played a waltz that Liesl recognized.

If there was one thing that Camile von Trapp adored almost as much as music, her husband, and her four children, it was a lively evening of dinner parties and dances, surrounded by her socialite friends from her boarding school days. Parties were a regular occurrence in the Trapp family villa. In the summer, they were held nightly. As much as Camile loved to host a party, Liesl loved to watch.

"In the pink dress," Liesl said. "Dancing with Father."

The two children looked down, trying to pick out their mother in the swirling sea of pastel evening gowns and black tuxedos with crisp white collars.

"I see her," Friedrich finally said.

Liesl smiled. She had been watching the entire night, and only had eyes for her mother. She's so beautiful, Liesl thought to herself. And graceful, too. I want to be like her one day.

The music came to an end, and the guests clapped - Liesl and Friedrich included.

Camile looked up just then, and caught her two oldest children watching the party through the banisters. Smiling, she excused herself to the guests and began to climb the stairs leading to the nursery.

Most children would have been terrified at the thought of being caught out of bed by their mother, but Liesl and Friedrich, clad in their nightclothes, excitedly clambered to their feet and ran to hug their mother's skirt. Camile laughed.

"Are you enjoying the party, darlings?" She asked them.

"Yes," Friedrich said immediately.

"You look the prettiest, Mother!" Liesl cried.

"Shhh," Camile hushed her daughter. "You'll wake the babies."

Liesl clapped her hands over her mouth. But it was too late; they could hear wails coming from baby Kurt's room.

"Sorry, Mama," Friedrich apologized.

"That's alright, darling," Camile comforted her son. "Come now, let's put Kurt back to bed."

Camile, with Liesl's hand in her right one and Friedrich's in her left, pushed open the door to Kurt's room with her toe. The infant was crying in his cradle, waving his chubby fists in the air. Camile picked him up and held him, rocking him back and forth.

"I'm sorry, Kurt," Liesel apologized to her baby brother.

"Why won't he be quiet?" Friedrich complained, covering his ears.

"Well, darling, he's too young to understand that he needs to sleep," Camile patiently explained. "So we have to help him."

"How?" Friedrich asked.

Camile looked around the room, her gaze finally landing on the rocking chair by the fireplace. The Captain had bought it for her when Liesl was born, and though it was a bit worn she had used it for each of her children. "Let's sing him a song," she said with a smile.

Liesl clapped her hands in excitement - only to regret it when Kurt began sobbing even more loudly. Quickly, Camile settled herself in the rocking chair with Kurt in her arms, Liesl leaning against the arm of the chair, and Friedrich at her feet.

"What song should we sing to him?" Camile struggled to ask over Kurt's caterwauling.

"Edelweiss!" Liesl suggested.

"Edelweiss," Friedrich agreed.

"Edelweiss it is, then," Camile agreed. In a soft, sweet voice, she began the song. "Edelweiss, edelweiss, every morning you greet me -"

"Small and white," Liesl added in.

"Clean and bright," Friedrich sang.

"You look happy to meet me!"

Just then, a fourth voice, unannounced and unanticipated, joined in. "Blossom of snow may you bloom and grow, bloom and grow forever. Edelweiss, edelweiss -"

"Bless my homeland forever," Camile and the Captain sang together.

Liesl stood on tiptoe to look down on her now-sleeping baby brother. "It worked!" She whispered.

The Captain chuckled at his daughter's antics. "And now, my dear, you need to go to bed."

Liesl pouted, but allowed her father to scoop her and Friedrich up and carry them to the room they shared with two-year-old Louisa, sound asleep and sucking her thumb. The Captain gently tucked in his two oldest children, pulling the quilts up to their chins and kissing their foreheads.

"Goodnight, Father," the siblings called out.

"Sleep well, children," the Captain called back, closing the door.

As soon as the Captain's footsteps had faded away, Friedrich rolled over in his bed to call to his sister. "Hey, Liesl!"

"What?"

"That was fun."

Liesl giggled. "It was. Even though we woke up baby Kurt."

There was a pause. "So we'll do it again tomorrow night?"

"Absolutely."

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you for reading! I know** ** _Sound of Music_** **isn't as popular a category as others, but I recently starred as Liesl von Trapp in a community theatre production of this show. While preparing for the role, I did a lot of character work with the actors who played my siblings, and these stories are what we came up with. Please leave a review and let me know what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2: Liesl and Louisa

_Disclaimer: "The Sound of Music" belongs to Rodgers and Hammerstein  
_

* * *

 **Liesl and Louisa: Of Tutors and Toads**

"Children," Captain von Trapp announced, sternly surveying his lined-up children. "This is your new governess, Fraulein Hedwig."

Twelve-year-old Liesl eyed Fraulein Hedwig with disdain. The woman was short and squat, with severe features and round eyeglasses. She nodded enthusiastically at the Captain's every instruction, even practicing each child's separate whistle call with him.

"I'm leaving for Vienna this afternoon," the Captain informed Fraulein Hedwig. "I have important business to attend to. You are in charge, Fraulein. Do not disappoint me."

"No, sir," Fraulein Hedwig agreed while nodding.

Out of the corner of her eye, Liesl caught her nine-year-old sister Louisa roll her eyes.

Once the Captain left, Fraulein Hedwig marched the children back up to their classroom. For three days, nothing eventful happened. Fraulein Hedwig woke them up early every morning, made them wash and checked their hands and faces for missed spots of dirt, fed them plain a breakfast, and sat with them during their lessons to make sure they didn't slack off.

Then, on the fourth day, it happened.

Liesl had finished braiding her hair and was fastening the clasp on her mother's locket when she felt someone breathe on her ear. She let out a shriek and jumped around, coming face-to-face with Fraulein Hedwig's eyeglasses.

"What have you got there?" Hedwig asked.

"My mother's necklace," Liesl responded calmly. She tried to walk away, but Fraulein Hedwig grabbed her arm, pinning her in place.

"Little girls have no need of such expensive things," Fraulein Hedwig said sharply. "You might lose it."

"I wouldn't!"

"But you would. You'd lose it, and your poor father would be terribly angry."

Liesl bristled. "He doesn't even know I have the locket!"

Her eyes widened as she came to the realization of what she had admitted. Her governess smiled like a barracuda.

"And I suppose you'd like to keep it that way? It would be a shame if he were to find out," Fraulein Hedwig threatened, her fingers digging into Liesl's arm. "Give me the locket, and I'll make sure he never knows."

What ensued was the most vicious stare down Liesl had ever been in. And she had once stared he had once been in a stare-down with her father, which had only been interrupted by the the arrival of Frau Schmidt. Finally, with shaking hands she unclasped the locket from her neck and handed it over to Fraulein Hedwig. The older woman examined Camile's locket with sharp eyes.

"What is this made of? Sterling silver?" Fraulein Hedwig asked. "Such a material would fetch a fine price."

"I wouldn't know, Fraulein," Liesl ground out through gritted teeth.

* * *

"That miserable, wicked old bat!" Louisa fumed.

Liesl hushed her sister, casting a nervous glance towards the closed bedroom door. Their lessons for the day had concluded, and after lunch Liesl had taken aside Louisa to explain what had transpired that morning. "What else was I to do? Father doesn't even know I have that locket. If he were to find out . . ."

"Then we'll steal it back!" Louisa interrupted.

"She'll just realize it's gone and take it away again." Liesl frowned. "We need to steal it back - but we also need to get her out of the house."

"Ooh," started Louisa, "On her day off, when she's gone -"

"- That's too late. Her next day off isn't for another six days, remember?" Liesl sighed. "She'll have already sold Mother's locket by then. No, we need to get her out of the house permanently."

The two girls stewed in silence, which was shortly broken by Louisa.

"Remember when we were walking with . . . well, with Mother that one day, and we found those frogs along the lake?" She explained. "And that was before the tadpoles had hatched! Think of how many frogs we could catch if we went today. . ."

"I think I know what you're getting at!" Lisel cried.

"I'll excuse us to go on a walk along the lake -" said Louisa.

"- We'll use one of the pails from that old well," Liesl added.

"I can pick the lock on Fraulein Hedwig's bedroom door!"

"And once we're in, we'll - wait, you know how to pick a lock?" Liesl looked with mild concern to her sister.

"Please, I live with two brother who like to hide my stockings and steal my hairbrush," Louisa explained with a roll of her eyes. "You were saying?"

"Yes," continued Liesl. "Once we've broken into her room, I'll get my locket whilst you dump the toads into her bed. And when she finds them -"

"- She'll be halfway to Switzerland before she even realizes the locket is gone," Louisa concluded with a mischievous smile.

Sure enough, right after dinner when the two girls had settled down to brush and braid each other's hair, they heard an eardrum-piercing, glass-shattering shriek that Liesl was sure could be heard all the way to Britain. The the two sisters shared a knowing smile, grabbed hands and raced out to the second-floor landing. Their other siblings leaned over the banister to watch in confusions as Fraulein Hedwig, carpet bag in hand and glasses askew, marched out in a red-faced huff.

"Your father will hear about this!" Their former governess screamed her last words as she slammed the front door shut.

"Well," Liesl said to her sister as Louisa fastened the locket back around her neck. "I suppose we'll be needing a new governess."


	3. Chapter 3: Liesl and Kurt

_Disclaimer: "The Sound of Music" belongs to Rodgers and Hammerstein_

* * *

 **Liesl and Kurt: The "Practical" Prank War (And How it Was Resolved)**

Fraulein Josephine was the worst governess sixteen-year-old Liesl'd ever had.

Well, not _the_ worst, but right up there along with Fraulein Hedwig, Fraulein Edith, and Fraulein Alberta. She was a strict observer of rules, loved kissing up to their handsome widowed father, and was stubborn; very stubborn; _too_ stubborn.

Liesl knew she had to go.

"What do you think, Liesl, toads again?" Louisa asked, breaking her sister out of her reverie. "Or should we use her toothbrush to clean Gretl's shoes? Poor thing stepped in horse dung during our walk yesterday." Louisa grinned mischievously. " _Fresh_ horse dung."

"Or why don't we just tell Father that we don't like her?" Ten-year-old Kurt suggested.

His three older siblings shot him a dubious look. "Father's in Vienna," Friedrich reminded Kurt.

"Not that he's listen to us even if he _was_ here," Liesl added with disdain.

"He might," argued Kurt. "Especially if we tell him she want to be the new Baroness von Trapp. She hasn't exactly been subtle about that."

It was true; Fraulein Josephine was constantly reminding the children that they had to respect her as if she were their mother. She loved to tell them how distraught their poor father was after the death of their dear mother, and how he needed the gentle company of a woman and a new mother for his children.

"Your father is very handsome," she'd say. "Women will be clambering to be his wife. You'd all best get used to the idea."

The children were definitely _not_ inclined to get used to that idea. Fraulein Josephine had overstepped her boundaries. But how to get rid of her? That was the question facing the von Trapp children that afternoon.

"Father would never believe us," Liesl said. "We need to get her out of the house. The sooner the better, too."

"Can't we just try to be reasonable this time?" Kurt exclaimed.

"No," Liesl, Friedrich, and Louisa said in unison.

"Oh, oh, I know!" Louisa cried. "She always goes into the pantry every morning at six to fix our morning tea. We could use soap to make the floor slippery. She'll come downstairs, slip, and crash into the door, which we'll have positioned so that with the slightest movement, a jar of spiders will fall over - right on her head!"

"No," Kurt argued.

"Yes," Liesl contradicted. "I like it. It's very original. A bit messy, but we have time before Father comes back from Vienna to clean the house. So now, who's with me?"

"I already have the spiders," Louisa volunteered.

"I can soap the floor!" Friedrich offered.

"No!" Kurt shouted again. "I don't think we should do this. Please, Liesl, let's just tell Father that Fraulein Josephine needs to go."

Liesl narrowed her eyes. "Fine. We won't pull the prank," she said. "But I'm not telling Father. You'll do that yourself when he gets back. And if it doesn't work . . ."

Kurt swallowed nervously.

* * *

As it turned out, Kurt never had to tell his father anything. On the morning of the day their father was supposed to arrive, the entire house awoke to a large _crash,_ followed by a scream that lasted for five minutes (Not that Liesl was counting). The children, still in the nightclothes, ran down to the kitchen - and slipped on a soaped up floor, knocking into Fraulein Josephine, who was covered in spiders.

"That's it!" Fraulein Josephine screamed. "I've had it! I quit this family!"

Still only in her dressing gown and without even her suitcase, she ran out the back door, leaving the seven von Trapp children in a heap on the soap-covered floor.

"Liesl . . ." said Brigitta

"Ow, my finger, my finger!" Gretl shouted.

"Friedrich, get your hand off my back!" Liesl ordered.

"Liesl . . ." Brigitta said again.

"I'm not even touching you!" Friedrich cried.

"LIESL, IT'S A SPIDER!" Brigitta screeched.

Chaos broke loose, and the children leapt up screaming and running and slipping on the floor.

"Get it off, get it off, get it off!" Liesl screamed, hopping on one foot and sliding around.

Kurt, seeing the black creepy-crawly on his sister, grabbed it by the leg and threw it into the sink. Liesl grabbed Frau Schmidt's favorite wooden spoon and smacked it until it stopped moving.

Brother and sister looked at each other. "What was that?" Kurt exclaimed. "Who did that? I thought we agreed we weren't going to play any pranks on the governess! Was it you?"

"Of course not!" Liesl denied. "I think I know who it was. Louisa asked yesterday if we were still going to carry out the prank on Fraulein Josephine."

Kurt shot her a look.

"No, no!" Liesl shook her head. "I told her, I said that I wanted to, but . . ." Her eyes grew wide. ". . . Then Marta started crying about her ribbons, and I got distracted." She looked over at the mess made on the floor. "Kurt, what time does Father get back?"

"At nine o'clock," Kurt gulped, "in the morning."

Liesl threw the spoon down. "Get Brigitta's butterfly nets. We don't know how many spiders are left in the house. And grab every rag, every towel you can find. I'll tell the others to calm down and help them dress."

"What about breakfast?"

"Get Louisa to make toast and tea. I won't risk Frau Schmidt finding us out."

Kurt ran for the door.

"And," Liesl called out, "let her know that if she refuses to help, I'll tell Father that Fraulein Josephine caught her drawing rude pictures on her schoolwork."

For the next three hours, the two of them mopped, scrubbed, dried, and polished not only the kitchen floor but the soapy footprints the others had tracked all through the house. Together, they caught and released six of the eight spiders Louisa had admitted to collecting (One of them Liesl had killed earlier, and the other . . . well, Liesl hoped that it had hitched a ride with Fraulein Josephine).

At nine o'clock sharp, the Captain walked into the dining room to see his see his neatly dressed children seated around the table, sipping tea and munching toast. He pretended not to notice how his children, who had once been so happy to see him, fell silent and rose to their feet.

"Children," he said. Looking around the table, he saw that Fraulein Josephine was missing (Not that he was upset by it - she had become too familiar with him and the children, and he had been planning to dismiss her that day). "Where's your governess?"

The children cast nervous glances at each other, as if trying to decide who should speak, when Kurt spoke up. "Fraulein Josephine resigned this morning, Father."

"Did she?" The Captain tried to hide his pleasure. "That's a shame. Well, I suppose I ought to write to Nonnberg Abbey."

"The Abbey?" Liesl repeated.

"Yes; I was thinking that perhaps a novice with orders to stay will last here longer," the Captain said. _And nuns can't marry, which means no more governesses plotting to be the next Baroness_ , the Captain thought to himself.

As he turned to leave, he didn't notice his older daughter cover Brigitta's mouth to keep her from shouting that there was a spider - on the back of his jacket.


	4. Chapter 4: Liesl and Brigitta

_Disclaimer: "The Sound of Music" belongs to Rodgers and Hammerstein_

* * *

 **Liesl and Brigitta: Finding Your Place**

Fraulein Alberta was not too fond of questions. Or children. Or curiosity. Or curious children asking questions. "Good children always know their place" was her mantra. Good children were neat and orderly, did what they were told without question, and were strictly seen and not heard. Fourteen-year-old Liesl might have been alright with that; as long as the governess expected silence, she could stay out of the way.

Her seven-year-old sister Brigitta, on the other hand, was everything Fraulein Alberta despised - a curious child who loved nothing more than to ask questions.

All of their previous governesses had been patient with Brigitta. After all, she was a model pupil. Typically it was the older children they worried about - the ones who were always plotting together how to get rid of their latest nanny. So it took Liesl by surprise when the first of the children to be punished by Fraulein Alberta was none other than Brigitta.

It had all happened after a vocabulary quiz during their lessons one day. Fraulein Alberta had slammed down Brigitta's paper, startling them all.

"You missed a question," the governess had practically crowed with glee.

"Which one?" Brigitta asked.

Fraulein Alberta flipped over the paper, showing it to her. "Confidence," she told Brigitta, "has two syllables."

"No it hasn't," Brigitta argued.

Liesl winced as Fraulein Alberta drew in a sharp breath. "Young lady, I have studied at the University of Munich. I was the only woman in my class to earn a degree."

"Congratulations," Brigitta said sincerely, even though Fraulein Alberta clearly didn't hear it that way.

"Are you saying that you're smarter than me?"

"'More smart,'" Brigitta corrected."And considering you don't know how many syllables are in con-fi-dence, I'd say yes."

The younger children giggled as Fraulein Alberta's face turned bright red, but Liesl and Friedrich exchanged nervous glances. "What is she doing?" Friedrich whispered to his sister. "Can't she see Fraulein Alberta's about to kill her?"

"You!" Fraulein Alberta shouted, pointing at Friedrich. "Be quiet! And you," she reached down, grabbing Brigitta's arm and wrenching her up. The younger girl began to cry at the rough treatment. "Go to your room. And you'll stay there until you apologize."

Liesl's hands clenched into white-knuckled fists.

"But why?" Brigitta exclaimed, eyes growing wide.

"For being impertinent, that's why!" The governess huffed.

Without knowing what she was doing, Liesl leapt up to her feet. "All she did was correct a silly mistake you made!" Liesl shouted. "And instead of acting like a grown-up and being gracious about the situation, you decided to send Brigitta to her room!"

"Would you like to go, too, young lady?" Fraulein Alberta threatened. "You can stay up there until dinner is over. Or until she apologizes to me. It's your choice. Tell your sister to apologize for being rude."

"Never," Liesl ground out through clenched teeth. "Come along, Brigitta." She held out her hand.

Head held high and eyes red-rimmed, Brigitta walked between the desks to take Liesl's hand. With one last scornful glance cast at Fraulein Alberta, Liesl marched out, clutching her younger sister's hand.

"It's going to be fine," Liesl comforted her sister as soon as they were out in the hall. "I know you were right. It's not your fault."

"Yes it is," Brigitta sobbed. "I should have been quiet, like she's always telling me to be. I never know when to shut up. I'm always asking annoying questions and being weird."

"Where did you hear that from?!" Liesl exclaimed, though she had a feeling that she already knew who.

"Fraulein Alberta," Brigitta said. "She . . . reprimanded me last night."

"You never told me."

"I was scared," Brigitta admitted. "I thought she was right."

Liesl stopped in her track and knelt down beside her sister. "Listen to me," she said, "there's nothing wrong with seeking out answers. Some people live their whole lives in fear of approaching another person and asking a question. But Brigitta, you're so incredibly bright! You're observant; nothing gets past you. You want to know everything there is to know about the world and more. You're like . . ." she paused painfully. "You're like Mother in that regard. Always curious, always hungry for knowledge. Did you know that Father built the library just for her?"

"No." Brigitta sniffled.

Liesl smiled. "He complained at first that adding a library to the building would throw the house out of balance, but she persisted. It didn't take too long," Liesl laughed. "The library was built in just three weeks. And Father didn't stop there. He sent for books from all over the world, including some very rare, very priceless volumes. He sent for furniture from Britain, and had a cuckoo clock for mantle sent from Germany."

"He did all that for her?" Brigitta exclaimed.

"Everything. He didn't care that she was hungry for knowledge, forever asking questions and wanting to know more. And he never, never once said that she was weird - because she wasn't."

Unexpectedly, Brigitta threw her arms around Liesl's neck, burying her face in Liesl's shoulder.

"Thank you," the younger girl whispered.

Liesl put her arms around Brigitta and lifted her up, bridal style. "Let's go to my room," Liesl offered. "I have some tea biscuits stashed away. They'll be a little dry since we haven't any tea to go with, but they'll keep us from becoming hungry."

"What about Fraulein Alberta?" Brigitta asked.

A scream resounded through the halls right at that moment.

"Oh," Liesl said innocently. "I suppose Louisa's already taken care of her."


	5. Chapter 5: Liesl and Marta

_Disclaimer: "The Sound of Music" belongs to Rodgers and Hammerstein_

* * *

 **Liesl and Marta: Growing Pains**

The Nazis had been guarding the Trapp family Villa for two days. Their automobiles were stationed right outside the gates, and they had even gone so far as to set boats out on the lake behind their house.

Never in all her life had Liesl been more terrified. Not when that spider had crawled up her back, not when she had been caught sneaking around with Rolf by Maria, not even when her mother had fallen mortally ill with scarlet fever. It was made worse by the fact that her parents refused to tell her or the others anything. They didn't want to risk being overheard, or one of the children slipping up and saying something in front of the soldiers.

Still, she tried her best to put on a brave face for her younger siblings. They had already done so much to comfort her after Rolf's betrayal, and they knew even less than she did about what was going on.

The night before the festival, Liesl remembered a book she had meant to take with her - one of her mother's treasured editions - and snuck out of her room to fetch it from the library, when, as she was walking, she heard sniffling coming from . . .

 _Marta's room?_ She thought, confused.

Marta had always been the most quiet of the von Trapp children. Having grown up taking care of her siblings, Liesl was always on the lookout for the noisiest child, as they were the ones most likely to get into or cause trouble. In fact, Liesl realized, Marta was always so quiet and well-behaved that she usually overlooked her entirely. No one in the family really knew about Marta, not even Maria, who was close to all the children.

Tip-toeing on the balls of her feet, Liesl pushed open the door to Marta's bedroom, peering inside. The seven-year-old was huddled in the middle of her bed, with the sheet wrapped around her. The lights were off, but light filtered in through the thin drapes hanging over the windows.

"Marta?" Liesl called.

Marta looked up, her face tear-streaked. "Liesl?" Marta sniffed. "What are you doing here?"

"I heard you crying." Liesl crossed the room and sat down on the bed with her sister. "Is everything alright?"

Marta nodded her head, to which Liesl raised her eyebrows. Blushing, Marta shook her head no. "I'm scared," she admitted.

"Of what?" Liesl asked, crossing her legs and holding out her arms so Marta could climb onto her lap. As soon as she was settled, Liesl used the end of the bedsheet to wipe her eyes.

"Are we really going to drive all the way to Switzerland?" Marta asked.

Liesl chuckled. "If we can get that old car up and running, then yes."

"I don't want to go."

"Me neither," Liesl confessed. "But we have no other choice."

"Why?"

Liesl sighed, trying hard to think of the best way to explain the Anschluss when she herself barely knew what it was. "Have you seen how everyone in the neighborhood has the red flag with the black spider on display, but father still flies the Austrian flag?"

"Yes," Marta said quietly.

"They don't fly that flag because they want to. The ruler of Germany sent in people to make us obey their laws and display their flag," Liesl explained. "And now . . . now those same people want to take Father away."

"Why do they want our father?" Marta asked.

"Lots of reasons, darling. But now we have to get out of Austria before they can do that. Do you understand?"

"I think so," Marta said. "Will we be coming back here?"

"Someday, Marta. I do hope someday."

"I'm still scared."

Liesl hugged her sister tighter. "Me too. But it's like Mother said to me the day she came back; we have to face our fears." She paused, looking down at Marta. "Do you think you can do that?"

"I can try," Marta offered.

Liesl smiled sadly, kissing the top of her sister's head. "You can do it. You're the bravest little girl I know."


	6. Chapter 6: Liesl and Gretl

_Disclaimer: "The Sound of Music" belongs to Rodgers and Hammerstein_

* * *

 **Liesl and Gretl: On the Day You Were Born**

"Have you already decided on a name if it's a boy?" Eleven-year-old Liesl asked her brother. The six von Trapp children were seated around the living room while their mother, Camile von Trapp, was in labor with their new sibling. They had been left by themselves, since their father had insisted on staying right outside their mother's room. While with child, Camile had promised her children hey they could name their new brother or sister, sparking a great deal of discussion and argument amongst the siblings.

"Kurt and I decided on Rupert," nine-year-old Friedrich old his sister. "Have you and the others picked out a name?"

"No," Liesl fumed. "We couldn't agree on one. I wanted to name her Augusta, but Louisa said it was too old-sounding. She wanted to name the baby Heidi." Liesl wrinkled her nose. "Brigitta, of course, wanted to name he baby some old medieval name from one of her books. Isolde, I think it was. At least with Brigitta's name Louisa and I could agreed that it was horrible."

At that moment, the Captain threw open the doors to the room. The six von Trapp children jumped to their feet, all talking at once.

"Is Mother alright?"

"Has the baby been born?"

"Is it a boy or girl?"

"Father, what's wrong?"

"Silence!" Their father called. The children immediately fell quiet. He looked around the room at their young waiting faces, trying to hide a smile. "Children . . . your mother is well, as is the baby."

Liesl smiled in relief.

"And you have a new little sister," the Captain told his children.

The girls shrieked in delight, running up to their father, shouting all at once.

"Oh, oh Father, name her Augusta!" Liesl cried.

"No, no, name her Heidi!" Pleaded Louisa.

"What about Isolde?"

"No, Brigitta!"

The Captain looked down at his daughters in confusion. "You didn't decide on a name? Your mother gave you four months to come to an agreement!"

"We couldn't agree," Liesl admitted. "They wanted to give the baby stupid names."

"Hey!" Brigitta chided her older sister.

"Liesl," the Captain scolded his daughter. "That is not a word we use in this house. And it is certainly not a young word that a lady should use towards her sisters."

Liesl immediately felt guilty. "I'm sorry, Father."

The Captain sighed. "Until you agree on a name, you will stay in this room."

"But Father, we'll be here all day!" Louisa wailed.

The Captain raised an eyebrow. "That long? Well, then, I'll offer you an escape. If you can't agree on a name by sundown, your mother and I will name the baby ourselves."

The Captain watched with amusement the look of horror that came over his daughters' faces. "Boys," he called to Friedrich and Kurt, "come along now."

With that, the brother followed their father out - and the Captain locked the door.

* * *

"Gretl?" Camile repeated the name her daughters had given her. The baby lay in her arms, sleeping peacefully. Looking down at her, Liesl thought that she had never seen a more precious, more perfect baby. Her head was covered with pale blonde fuzz that would surely darken as she grew older, like her older sisters' hair. Every feature on her face was button-sized. And when she yawned, Liesl felt a little piece of her heart die and fly up to heaven.

"Gretl," Louisa affirmed.

"Short for Gretl Heidi Augusta Isolde," Liesl couldn't help but add proudly.

"A lovely name," Camile complimented her children. "Where did you come by the first name, though? Your father told me not three hours ago that you couldn't agree on anything!"

The sisters exchanged looks, none of them daring to admit to Camile that they had picked the name from one of little Marta's books, a fairytale they had all enjoyed growing up - _Hansel and Gretl_.

* * *

 **A/N: Aaaaand that's all she wrote! I hope you enjoyed these little short stories. Again, thank you for reading!**


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